Day 24: Rince Cochon Cuvee Speciale Sur Lie

For world beer Wednesday we are going back to Belgium and grabbing a Rince Cochon Cuvee Speciale Sur Lie. A Belgian style blonde ale which was originally brewed in France, but moved to Belgium when it was acquired in 1990. The pig (Cochon) is what drew me to this bottle. So lets make the liquid trip abroad one more time!

-Appearance: Nice head when poured, that stays throughout the duration of the beverage. A slightly cloudy blonde ale with really nice carbonation. Maybe a bit of sediment? I was expecting some since its bottle refermented, and Sur lie is a process of aging that calls for stirring up the yeast at the bottle of a fermentation tank. That being said that’s wine making terminology and not sure if the same process applies for beer.

-Nose: Yeasty sourdough bread notes. Don’t get the big ripe banana notes that you usually do with a Belgian style ale. They are still present, but just not as pronounced. All these kind of play into a stale beer type smell. One that’s not as offensive as that sounds.

-Palate: A lighter beer on the palate which I expected. However, this baby does clock in at 8.5% ABV. You get a smooth velvety mouth-feel that makes for a pleasant pint. You do get that breadiness from the nose. Which sticks on the palate but not necessarily in a bad way. But I wouldn’t recommend going to meet someone with this guy on your breath.

-Rating: 2.75/5: It’s on the lighter side of the spectrum and I wouldn’t mind having another but it’s not something I would drink on a regular basis. Just ok in my book. I will say that it is a little more on the balanced side than most of Belgian style ales. It would be a great food beer for sure. So next time I’m in a Belgian/French Brasserie and I’m feeling a beer over wine, I’ll grab one of these guys.